Shmiel
Masculine · “God has heard”
Shmiel is the Yiddish of Samuel — God has heard — and Hannah names him for the prayer that was answered.
How old is the name Shmiel?
Shmiel first appears in US birth records in 1959 — 66 years ago. The typical Shmiel is a kid of about 10 — this name's wave is very recent. About 900 people named Shmiel are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Shmiel most popular?
Shmiel peaked in 2025, reaching #2230 nationally. Today it ranks #2230, exactly where it peaked. See the whole 2025 chart.
Where it comes from
From shama El to Shmiel
The story of Shmiel
Hannah prays silently at Shiloh, is taken for drunk, and names the son she is given — and the text's explanation of the name plays on a root that does not quite match it, which commentators have noticed for two thousand years. Shmiel is the Yiddish form, current in Orthodox communities, and is in current American use.
Meaning
God has heard
Through Samuel, from the Hebrew Shmu'el — shama, 'to hear', and El, 'God'. 1 Samuel has Hannah explain the name by saying she asked him of the Lord, which fits a different root; both readings are ancient. The hearing reading is the standard one.
How the name formed
- shama El
- Shmu'el
- Shmiel
Related forms: שמואל · Samuel · Shmuel
Pronouncing Shmiel
SHMEE-ul
Two syllables, stress on the first. Hebrew Shmuel is shmoo-EL.
Nicknames for Shmiel
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1959
- Most boys named
- 202563 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2230reached in 2025
- Change vs 2024
- +40.0%63 in 2025, from 45
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Shmiel in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- שמואל in Yiddish — transliteration
- Samuel in English — related form
- Shmuel in Hebrew — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York.
Shmiels among us
people named Shmiel are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 27,112 born in 2025 was named Shmiel
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Naomi test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Shmiel's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Naomi climbed just as high around 1924, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Naomi's path sketches the road Shmiel is walking now.
Shmiel sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Shmiel is headed
Shmiel should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Shmiel beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Shmiel in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That the text's own explanation of the name does not quite fit is a first-rate detail.
- The God-has-heard meaning is transparent and warm.
- Sam is available as an English short form with an enormous record.
- The initial shm cluster is difficult for English speakers.
- Samuel is what English speakers will assume.
- It reads as specifically Orthodox Ashkenazi.
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What they receive
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Shmiel
Masculine · #2230 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Shmiels are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Shmiel are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Shmiel in 2025?
- Shmiel ranks #2230 among US boy names in 2025, with 63 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Shmiel?
- About 1 in every 27,112 US boys born in 2025 was named Shmiel — 63 in all.
- Will my child share the name Shmiel with classmates?
- Shmiel will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Shmiel
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rayaan#2230 · Tyce#2230 · Earl#2230 · Gene#2230 · Sylis#2230 · Vinny#2230 · Klaus#2230 · Damoni#2230
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Shmiel? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Shmiel and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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